The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1887-06-23
METHOD, OF BUSINESS
Pursusd by the Bank-Country Corrospou,

onts III Dnngur-vnlus OF Stock.
CINCINNATI, June 22.-rhe Enquirer says
OF the Fidelity bank: "From the start the
bank commenced to do wonderful bust
ness; but 1t was business which profited
1t nothing. Other banks paid for the de-
posits Of country banks per cent. This
bank paid q. Other banks charged for
collections. This bank did not. Other
banks sold exchange. This bank gave it
away. This bank had no income what
ever cave from discounts, and it discount:
ed comparatively little. It was deposits
TINT 1t was after. 81
1tsecured vas! deposit list. Mr.. Har-
per WAS supposed to be our greatest fnan-
cier. he wss credited with having made
million in an ancient Chicago wheat
deal. Money flowed in. The business
WAS immense, but 1t paid nothing. There
have been questions since whether Mr..
Harper made anything Mt all upon his
ancient Chicago wheat deal. ea,,.. ~.
Suddenly, in the flush OF its prosperity,
it occurred to the Fidelity to enlarge its
capital from Sl,0000O0 to S2,000,00O. It
PLACED Home of it round about by personal
solicitation. In many cssea IL sold ita
stock for u aingle-nameS note, accepting
the stock itself IS collateral. This was an
absolute violation Of tho National Bank
ing law. 1t ia more than doubtful If the
notes csn be collected.
The great bulk OF the stock was taken
by Mr.. E. L. Harper. He held, in his
oTn name, 2,Sl2 shnres. In the name Of
one Of his employee, Mr.. Matthews he
held l,709 shares. In the name OF on
other employe, MIR. Gshr, he held !, 10
shares, He had, in addition, other hold
ings not quite SO manifest upon tho sur
lace. It IS matter OF general knowledge
that Mr.. Harper WAS the bank, and that
tho bank was Mr.. Harper" E. Fl
COUNTRY BANKS IN DANGER. s
The bank has been doing very large
business, and the detention Of its mail
may cause some serious embarrassment to
other bankg, and the Comptroller OF the
Currency has been applied to to allow its
immediate dipttibution. The deposits OF
country banks which kept accounts with
the Fidelity, according to the last state.
mcnt was over So 900, 900; just how much
| OF this has been Withdrawn csn not be
stated, us msuy banks which ordered the
Fidelity to remit their balancea to New
York, aud had received advices from
Ammi Baldwin, cashier, that the money
had been remitted as ordered and the
same charged to their account, have found
that when they began to check upon such
balances in New York no such balances
were there, and that the funds had never
boen remitted by the Figelity as stated.
The farreaching effect of this action, or
rather insctioD, will cripple many coun-
try banks no doubt, II it is not the cause
ot failures. There is such IN intimate
connection among correspondent banks Of
this kind that they bsar the relation
to each other as brick in pile on
edge-s slight push will send the entire
row flat. But, as has been intimated,
very many country banks have transfer.
red balances from the Fidelity to other
local bsuks, and such as have done SO
are uaio. On y last \ Tuesday week
the entire local business community
was flooded with dispatches from Chicago,
New York and various other quarters ssk-
ing II there was run Oh the Fidelity Ma.
tlonal Bank, ard other such alarming ques.
tons. These dispatches, and other ma
chinetions OF speculative persons appar-
emily equally unscrupulouR as the Fidelity
trio have proved to be, created m alarm
which amounted to quiet q run on the
Fidelity Of its country bank correspou.
dents. On laet Tuesday the Clearing
house balancs upon the Fidelity was $780,
600, and Of each succeeding day IL was
Of about equal amount. until Friday 1t
amounted to 100000; in addition to this
posted individuals checked out their &C.
counts. This drain upon the banks re-.
sources could not be stood forever. and the
only wonder was that tho bank withstood
80 long without going under. 5i3